I’m happy today to host the book blog tour of Michel Prince for the book, Chrysalis. I asked Michel to answer one question about her writing.
What is the appeal for you in writing Young Adult fiction, and what led you to choose the subject of a multicultural paranormal romance?
Although I enjoy reading Young Adult I never intended to write YA. I was simply flashing back to when Oscar and Ellie met, but with YA you have the joy of firsts. That first date or first kiss seems more intense when you experience them for the first time ever, not just the first time with that one person. Also in young adult you have the extreme emotions of teens. That time in your life everything is heightened because you’re still trying to discover who you are and what those crazy emotions really mean to you.
The characters were so telling when it came to their first years together and how magical their love was that I was compelled to keep writing. This is why the Chrysalis series is a cross over series because like most people it takes until they are adults to fully work through their issues…celestial or not. Walking the line between the two genres wasn’t as hard as one might think.
As far as why I chose multicultural…I write what I know and I felt that it was an underrepresented part of society. In The Beam, the second book in the series, you find Ellie searching for a positive interracial relationship in a movie. Although there may be multicultural characters in books, like still stays with like and that’s not how it is in real life. I wasn’t going for a political statement and I actually crossed a publishing company off my list because they wanted me to stress the issues with interracial relationships.
In Chrysalis you’ll find the narrator Ellie doesn’t bring up people’s race outside side of her first visual description for the reader. After that outside people notice Oscar’s contrasting skin color, Ellie only sees him.
My book is about love and much like everything else, when it comes to my characters I can’t control anything they do. I am their puppet, I just enjoy the ladies choice in heroes.
Book Blurb:
In the annals of dysfunctional families, the Chisholm’s are working their way to the top. Drug abuse, an unwed mother with multiple fathers, and the questionable cash flow for the ‘pretty one’. All this from a seemingly normal, two parent middle class family. But were the choices truly made of their free will?
Bad choices are a Chisholm family trait, one that confounds the youngest child, Ellie, who’s trying to separate herself by making smart decisions. And falling for Oscar Jeffreys, the hottest guy at school, would be number one on the list of Chisholm family disasters. Yet the crazy part is it’s not a one sided attraction. Somehow Ellie has caught Oscar Jeffreys’ eye. Sure she could see the barriers between them. Race, age, popularity. They were at opposite ends of the spectrum. But a demon set to destroy her family? She can’t see that.
Oscar provides security and acceptance Ellie never imagined she deserved. As the passion of first love grows, Ellie honestly believes she has a chance to beat the odds and live a happy, normal life. Then her world collapses around her. With the help of a guardian angel, Ellie learns of a world that has unknowingly surrounded her for years. And she’ll have to find strength buried deep inside to save not only her future, but flush out and stop the demon in her midst.
And Ellie will have to learn that sometimes the hardest lesson about growing up is accepting that you’re worth more.
Prizes:
Michel will be awarding a butterfly gift basket to one randomly drawn commenter and a butterfly necklace to a second randomly drawn commenter. Increase your chances of winning by following the blog tour and commenting at each stop. For dates and details, click on the image below of her book, The Beam.
AUTHOR INFORMATION:
Michel Prince is an author who graduated with a bachelor degree in History and Political Science. Michel writes young adult and adult paranormal romance as well as contemporary romance.
With characters yelling “It’s my turn damn it!!!” She tries to explain to them that alas, she can only type a hundred and twenty words a minute and they will have wait their turn. She knows eventually they find their way out of her head and to her fingertips and she looks forward to sharing them with you.
When Michel can suppress the voices in her head she can be found at a scouting event or cheering for her son in a variety of sports. She would like to thank her family for always being in her corner and especially her husband for supporting her every dream and never letting her give up.
Michel is a member of RWA Pro and Midwest Fiction Writers. She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband, son, cat and new puppy.
LINKS:
http://www.facebook.com/MichelPrinceBooks?fref=ts
https://twitter.com/MichelPrince1
http://www.youtube.com/user/Michelprincebooks?feature=guide
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-chrysalis-779953-140.html
